A Surrogate Mother
by AmaranthPrincess21
Summary: While Adrien waits for Marinette, her mother keeps him company and he realizes just how much he misses his own mother.


Adrien was panting hard as he slowed to a stop in front of Marinette's front door. An akuma attack nearby had made him late for their work session. All he could do was hope she'd forgive him and he could stay a little later so they could finish this project for school. No doubt she was worried sick about him. He was trying to slow down his pounding heart, breathing slower as he knocked on the door. But it wasn't Marinette who answered; it was her mother.

"I'm so sorry I'm late," he choked out. "I . . . my photoshoot ran late . . ."

"It's all right, Adrien. Come in," she invited him. "Marinette's not here yet. You can wait for her in the kitchen" He thanked her and plopped down onto one of the stools. He could smell the luscious scent of cookies baking, making his mouth water. When was the last time he'd eaten? "Did you run all the way here?"

"Yeah. It was a few blocks away and I panicked so I ran here instead of getting a ride." He felt horrible for lying, but he couldn't tell her, "I'm Chat Noir and I just fought off an akuma and now I'm out of breath."

"Did the shoot go well?" she asked. It looked like she was making something on the stove. He couldn't tell what.

"Yeah. Yeah, it went fine."

"Just fine?"

"I don't really like modelling. I'm only doing it because my dad wants me to and it's a way to get my own money," he explained. Mrs. Cheng nodded thoughtfully as she listened to him. A timer went off and she opened the oven, pulling out a batch of cookies. Adrien had to swallow in the saliva pooling in his mouth. It had been years since he'd had a cookie. His father and Nathalie only allowed him to have sweets on special occasions, and all of those times he'd had tarts or cakes. No, the last time he remembered having a cookie was when he mother was still around.

Adrien remembered being small, still clinging to his mother's skirt as she kicked all the cooks out of the kitchen so she and him could make cookies together. He would get the ingredients for her and if he was well-behaved (which he almost always was), she would let him pour the chocolate chips into the bowl of dough. It was a weekly occurrence and finally his father converted one of the extra rooms in the mansion a kitchen just for them so they wouldn't interrupt the cooks. Since she'd disappeared, he hadn't stepped foot in that kitchen. He doubted his father or anyone else did either.

"Would you like some cookies and hot chocolate?" Mrs. Cheng offered.

"Yes, please." She put the platter of cookies on the table while she fixed him his drink. "Thank you."

"It's nothing," she waved away his concern. She placed the mug of hot chocolate in front of him before sitting down at the table herself. He reached for a cookie and bit into it. The crisp outer shell broke into pieces and let forth a rush of molten chocolate. Adrien was sure he'd died and gone to heaven; there was no way such a wonderful thing like this could exist on earth.

"These are incredible, Mrs. Cheng," he said. A little bit of the chocolate dribbled out of his mouth and onto his hand. As much as he wanted to, he knew it'd be impolite to like the melted chocolate from his fingers. He opted to clean his hand on a nearby napkin.

"Thank you, Adrien." She smiled at him, and there was something in her beaming face that almost painfully reminded him of his mother. "It's a new recipe Tom and I are working with."

"I think it's amazing," he said sincerely. He wanted nothing more to eat the entire plate, but he knew he had to be polite and only have a few. Maybe if he was lucky, she'd send a few home with him. Moms did that, right?

They were silent for a few moments, Adrien happily eating and Mrs. Cheng sipping her tea. He wondered if his mother were still around, would he have moments like this with her? Just sitting at the table and eating cookies? He knew he did when he was a child, but even those seemed different. Those moments felt as if his mother was trying her hardest to be the perfect mother and give him the perfect memories. Right now with Mrs. Cheng, it didn't feel like she was trying. It just felt natural, like it was supposed to happen this way. It wasn't contrived and part of that scared Adrien. He decided to ignore that fear and turn to another matter at hand:

Marinette still hadn't shown up.

"Did . . . Did Marinette say where she was going before this?" Adrien asked Mrs. Cheng.

"No. She hasn't been home since lunch," she replied and he felt worry rot his stomach. What if she'd gotten hurt in the akuma attack? What if somehow Ladybug's magic cure hadn't affected her?

"I'm going to call her," he mumbled, pulling his phone out of his pocket. He quickly dialled her number and waited. It rang a few times before going to voicemail.

"Hi, it's Marinette! Leave a message! Beep!" her recording said.

"Hey Marinette, it's me. I'm at your house and you're not here. I just wanted to make sure you're okay. Call me back, or text. I don't know. Uh, see you soon." Through the call he could feel Mrs. Cheng's eyes on him, but he didn't feel unnerved about it. Of course she'd be concerned about her daughter. "I just got her voicemail," he said as he put his phone back in his pocket. She sighed and took another sip of tea. He grabbed another cookie. The chocolate in the middle was starting to set, but that wasn't going to stop him from.

"I should keep these in the oven so they stay warm," Mrs. Cheng thought aloud. Adrien grabbed another before she whisked the platter away, putting it back into the oven. "You know, I thought you were just being polite when you said you like them, but I guess I was wrong."

"I wouldn't lie to you about that," he replied.

"So there are things you'd lie to me about?" she asked. He spluttered, quickly stammering out a negative, that he'd _never_ lie to her. She only laughed. "I can see why you and Marinette are such good friends. You react the same under pressure." Adrien let out a nervous laugh as his heart rate went down.

"Y-yeah," he breathed, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's just a defensive habit, I guess." After years of dealing with Nathalie and his father, he knew a thing or two about backtracking and revising what he'd said. That's how he got so good at saying the right thing first. But her comment had thrown him off. Her eyes seemed to soften, as if she was realizing what he was saying and his body jolted into panic mode.

"I see," she said quietly. She paused, hesitating for a slight moment. In the end, it seemed like she decided against saying more, as she stayed silent. Great. Now she was going to think his father was abusive.

"It's not like that," he said quietly. "My father and his assistant are really particular about how they want things."

"His assistant?" He could feel an dry, sharp ache cut through his throat. It was one he knew well and one he had become a master of hiding years and years ago. He took a sip of milk and dug his fingernails into the palm of his hand. Surprisingly, physical pain helped keep tears away.

"My mother disappeared a few years ago," he said tersely after what felt like a long pause. Mrs. Cheng said nothing. She stood up and grabbed his mug of hot chocolate.

"I'll make you some more." She squeezed his shoulder reassuringly before returning to the stovetop. He wondered if this was what she did when Marinette was upset. When he had been upset, his mother would make him eat an apple. Something about him not getting enough nutrients. She didn't understand a child's worries that well. He hated to think that, but with all the facts glaring at him, it was hard to ignore.

Marinette didn't know how lucky she was. To have a loving mother and father, to have someone to make cookies with, to have someone who made natural loving moments. Tears stung his eyes and he dug his fingernails into his palm even harder. He was _not_ going to break down.

The door flew open and Marinette appeared in the doorway, panting hard and looking incredibly frazzled. Without even thinking, he jumped from his seat and had her in his arms in seconds.

"Adrien, I'm so sorry! Alya wouldn't let me go! I . . . Adrien?" She stopped talking, looking up at him.

"I was worried something had happened to you," he said. He wasn't lying, but he had to admit that in that moment he just needed contact and like hell he would ask her mother for a hug. She hesitated before hugging him back.

"I'm okay," she said, voice strong. She waved to her mother before leading him up to her bedroom. The finished their project in record time and dashed his hopes of being able to stay for dinner. Marinette was talking rather somberly as they made their way to the front door. Mrs. Cheng was still in the kitchen, but now she was attending to dinner rather than sweets.

"Marinette, can I have a word with Adrien?" she asked. Marinette looked surprised but nodded, ducking into her parent's room to give them a moment. "You're not in any trouble," she clarified, walking towards him. Mrs. Cheng put her hands on his shoulders. "If you ever need anything, like food, or a place to stay, you're more than welcome to come to us." To say Adrien was touched was an understatement. She had just opened her home and her life to him.

His mother was gone and all he had left were memories, but perhaps he'd found a new mother to watch over him.


End file.
